"Symptoms Appear on Average 5 Days After COVID-19 Infection... 14-Day Quarantine Reasonable"

[Asia Economy Reporter Seulgina Jo] A study has found that the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) shows symptoms on average 5 days after infection. This analysis, which shows that except for a very small number of cases, patients exhibit symptoms within 12 days after exposure, supports the current 14-day quarantine period as reasonable.

On the 10th (local time), the Annals of Internal Medicine, a journal of the American College of Physicians, published research by Justin Lessler and his team from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, reporting that the median time for COVID-19 confirmed patients to start showing symptoms was 5.1 days.

This incubation period is similar to that of coronaviruses causing Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) and Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS). However, considering that other coronaviruses causing the common cold typically have an incubation period of 3 days, this is much longer. The incubation period refers to the time after the virus enters the body during which it increases in number without yet having sufficient transmissibility.

The incubation period for COVID-19 was observed to be as long as 14 days in a very small number of cases. 97.5% of patients who showed COVID-19 symptoms exhibited them within an average of 11.5 days after virus exposure. The researchers estimated that among those who completed the 14-day quarantine and returned to society, the likelihood of symptoms appearing was 101 out of 10,000 people. Dr. Lessler stated, "Although some infection cases may be missed over a long period, the current 14-day active monitoring or quarantine is reasonable."

However, this study did not extend to confirming whether 'asymptomatic infection,' where patients transmit the disease even without symptoms, occurs. Professor Graham Cook, who studies infectious diseases at Imperial College London, told The Guardian, "This study confirms that 14-day quarantine is very close to 100% effective in blocking transmission, though not perfect," but also cautioned, "One should not hastily conclude that no infection has occurred just because symptoms do not appear during the 5-day suspected period."

This study analyzed 181 infection cases observed in China and other countries before February 24 of this year.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.